Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - The Prince and the Dressmaker

Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang

16 reviews

emkauffman2's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

bookishmillennial's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial

This was such a beautiful young adult story about modiste/designer Frances, who is chosen to be the young prince Sebastian’s personal stylist. She discovers he sometimes likes to wear dresses and wears a disguise at night so no one will recognize him as the prince. Sebastian explores his gender expression not only when he is dressed as Lady Crystallia (the name he eventually chooses during a night out), but also in the clothes he wears during the day as he completes his royal duties. It is not named but I felt their experience aligned with gender fluidity, bigender and/or gender queerness. I loved this arc & though one scene in particular was hard for me (because non-consensual outing scenes are so painful), I ultimately thought this was such a hopeful exploration!

France’s, on the other hand, is seemingly working from the bottom up - when she is hired as the young royal’s personal stylist, she is thrilled with the opportunities it could bring her. She is finally able to make a name for herself, but she quickly realizes that as long as Lady Crystallia has to stay hidden, so does she. Frances does not force the young royal to come out and tell everyone, but she also confronts the fact that she wants more than secret nights out. I was proud of both of these young adults, who obviously were scared and anxious about this new chapter in their lives, but still moved with courage and hope.

I loved the illustrations too, and I will seek out more books from Jen Wang in the future!

I read this for the #TransRightsReadathon (you can find more info at transrightsreadathon.carrd.co) & it also fits a prompt for “graphic novel” for the #TransReadingChallenge hosted by @readwithrhys 🩷🩵🤍

Content Warnings

gossameralbum's review against another edition

Go to review page

hopeful inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

Content Warnings

bluberrybooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

st1la's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

wallenne's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Overall, a very cute, heartwarming book with a hopeful ending

where the king and queen offer full support to their son

. The art style is super cute for the story, too!

Content Warnings

lolajh's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I think this story could be viewed in so many different ways but the thing that it absolutely is is queer. Sebastian’s gender identity and Frances’ sexuality are anything other than cis and straight. I do however not feel fully satisfied with the result. Queer historical fiction is something I never really like, as it more often than not has far too much representation of outing and trauma and trans/homophobia in order to make moments not like this appear happy. This book was very dark for a middle-grade book, and I guess I just so much prefer books full of queer joy than books like this, which still had a happy ending, but at what cost?

Content Warnings